Activities undertaken during period October – December 2022
The activities undertaken during period of October to December 2022 to implement the Recovery Project include community backyard nurseries, mushroom farming house set up and trial, establishment of an additional community-based fire patrolling team and river patrol team, awareness talks, monsoon season food aid support, wildlife monitoring and aerial survey.
- Community backyard nurseries at Kampung Meranti
Monthly monitoring on the backyard nurseries has continued to ensure the health and survival of the saplings. A trial planting plot was selected in Kampung Meranti for trial planting. The trial plot will be managed by the local community and to check on the growth of the planted saplings which are supplied by the community backyard nurseries. - Mushroom Farming as income diversification for OA community
Since July 2022, the Kampung Meranti community members have exposed to various training sessions on mushroom farming. Three mushroom houses were built by the communities and 600 mushroom spawns have been supplied to them for trial farming. The spawns have started to sprout and the participants are now adjusting their farming skills. More spawns will be distributed to increase their yield. - Community-based Fire Patrol and Monitoring
A new river patrol team was formed at Kampung Meranti with two local community members. The patrollers are monitoring the land-use change along the Sungai Bebar from Kampung Meranti to the adjacent land area next to YPPH estates. Another new patrol team of two community members from Kg Baharu Cenderawasih was formed to monitor a high fire risk area along the coastal road near to Pekan Forest Reserve. Two separate training sessions on using AvenzaMaps (a smartphone mobile app) were conducted with the new patrollers at Kampung Meranti and Kampung Cenderawasih. The app is a useful tool for the patrollers to record their observation coordinates and patrolling tracks. - Awareness talks on fire prevention
Two awareness talks for fire prevention on peatlands were organised for the Kampung Baharu Cenderawasih and Kampung Meranti communities on 9 and 10 December 2022. The Fire and Rescue Department officers from Pekan and Nenasi were engaged to give talk and conduct fire suppresion and control simulation to the audience. Other invited representative was from Lembaga Perindustrian Nanas Malaysia, Kuantan, to share best management practises for pineapple farming at Kg Cenderawasih. - Food Aid Preparation for the Monsoon
A total of 24 families in Kampung Meranti were provided with food basket in preparation for the monsoon. Every year end, the only main road to the village is blocked by the floods, meaning that villagers are unable to get their daily food supplies. The food basket included rice, dried noodles and condiment will at least reduce their burden. - Biodiversity Monitoring and Aerial Survey
The biodiversity assessment using camera traps focused at the forest border and water canal system. A few globally threatened species were recorded such as the endangered Hairy-nosed Otter, vulnerable Smooth-coated Otter, Sun Bear and Leopard. They have been frequently visiting, but there has been no reported conflict with plantation workers. These observations might suggest a positive indicator of human-wildlife coexistence.